Jez Corden Confirmed Halo Studios Cancelled Project Ekur—Multiplayer Title In a Franchise

Earlier this month, rumors emerged that a new multiplayer title set in the Halo universe, known as Project Ekur, had been canceled. This was confirmed by video game reporter Rebs Gaming, citing several Halo Studios employees, although no official confirmation has been made. Nevertheless, it seems that this report is indeed true.

In his latest blog post on Windows Central, reliable gaming insider and site editor Jez Corden confirmed that Halo Studios is no longer developing Project Ekur. You can check out his exact words below:

“Rebs reported that Halo Studios was working on a multiplayer title known as Project Ekur, which was cancelled. I've verified that as 100% true.”

Unfortunately, Corden does not reveal why the studio decided to cancel Project Ekur, nor did he share any previously unknown details about the game. According to unofficial information, the canceled Halo project was going to be fully multiplayer and use Unreal Engine 5. Additionally, there were rumors that it would feature extraction elements, similarities to the Warzone mode from Halo 5: Guardians, deep customization options, and more.

Speaking of Rebs Gaming, the outlet recently also published information alleging the mistreatment of employees by Halo Studios' management. It was reported that Pierre Hintze repeatedly abused developers using harsh language and played a direct role in the demotion and subsequent dismissal of Michael Farney, a former friend of Hintze's and the former development head of Halo: Campaign Evolved. In a post on X, Rebs Gaming personally addressed Xbox CEO Asha Sharma, sharing a link to a detailed exposé revealing all the details not only about Pierre Hintze's behavior but also about other developers at Halo Studios.

Dear @asha_shar

My new video report provides all of the information you need to realize that Halo Studios’ leadership must change. This goes beyond bad behavior. Their leader completely mismanaged Halo Campaign Evolved, which is a reason why they canceled a multiplayer project. Leadership changes must happen to save XBOX’s most important franchise. As a sidenote, these problems were previously made aware to Microsoft HR and Legal but they chose to ignore them.

As for the future of the Halo franchise, the previously mentioned Halo: Campaign Evolved—a remake of the original 2001 game—will release on July 28 and has already gone gold. Additionally, there have been recent reports that the rights to the series might be transferred to Activision as part of Microsoft's restructuring efforts; however, this transfer has not taken place so far.